bigbadbrother
01-23-2015, 12:07 AM
Jared Turner
Brian Vickers, whom it was announced in mid-December would miss the start of the 2015 Sprint Cup season following corrective heart surgery, has been medically cleared to return to racing in early March.
Michael Waltrip Racing announced Wednesday afternoon that Vickers will resume duties as driver of the No. 55 Aaron's Dream Machine Toyota in the Kobalt Tools 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on March 8. MWR also announced Wednesday that co-owner and two-time Daytona 500 champion Michael Waltrip will drive the No. 55 in the 57th annual Daytona 500 on Feb. 22. The organization did not name a driver for the March 1 race at Atlanta Motor Speedway.
"The doctors gave me a clean bill of health and said I will be better than before," said Vickers in a team news release. "The advancements in modern medicine and surgical procedures are amazing, and I have to thank my doctors at the Sanger Heart & Vascular Institute and Carolinas Medical Center for their extraordinary care. I have literally put my life in their hands twice, and I cannot begin to express my level of gratitude."
NASCAR has ruled Vickers eligible to compete in the 2015 Chase for the Sprint Cup despite him missing the season's first two races.
"With the clearance from his physicians, Brian Vickers has satisfied all necessary NASCAR requirements to resume racing on March 5," said Steve O'Donnell, NASCAR's executive vice president & chief racing development officer. "Further, NASCAR has reviewed the circumstances surrounding his situation and has determined that he will maintain Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup eligibility despite neither entering nor attempting to qualify in the first two championship events, provided he meets all other necessary eligibility requirements.”
Vickers, 31, has been sidelined multiple times for health issues since the 2010 season. That year, the Thomasville, N.C., native competed in only 11 Sprint Cup Series races before blood clots were discovered in his legs and lungs. Vickers also had surgery to repair a hole in his heart and was kept out of the Red Bull Racing car for the remainder of the year.
Vickers made a full recovery for the 2011 Sprint Cup Series season, drove a partial schedule in 2012 for MWR, and was sidelined once again in October 2013 for more blood clot issues.
"I was not feeling well in December, so I went to see Dr. William Downey in Charlotte (N.C.)," Vickers said of his latest medical setback. "He discovered my body was rejecting a patch that was surgically placed over a hole in my heart a few years ago. He and Dr. R. Mark Stiegel immediately went to work on correcting the problem. I also want to thank the great counsel along the way by Dr. Jerry Petty, Dr. Robert Heyer and my hematologist Dr. Stephan Moll from the University of North Carolina School of Medicine who is the founder of www.clotconnect.org.
"Now all of my focus is getting ready, so when I return we are prepared to win races and the championship in my Aaron's Dream Machine."
In 58 races as driver of MWR's No. 55 Toyota, Vickers has scored eight top-five and 19 top-10 finishes. He won the July race at New Hampshire in 2013 and captured the pole at Talladega in October 2014. The 2003 Xfinity Series champion owns three victories and 12 poles in 316 Sprint Cup starts.
Brian Vickers, whom it was announced in mid-December would miss the start of the 2015 Sprint Cup season following corrective heart surgery, has been medically cleared to return to racing in early March.
Michael Waltrip Racing announced Wednesday afternoon that Vickers will resume duties as driver of the No. 55 Aaron's Dream Machine Toyota in the Kobalt Tools 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on March 8. MWR also announced Wednesday that co-owner and two-time Daytona 500 champion Michael Waltrip will drive the No. 55 in the 57th annual Daytona 500 on Feb. 22. The organization did not name a driver for the March 1 race at Atlanta Motor Speedway.
"The doctors gave me a clean bill of health and said I will be better than before," said Vickers in a team news release. "The advancements in modern medicine and surgical procedures are amazing, and I have to thank my doctors at the Sanger Heart & Vascular Institute and Carolinas Medical Center for their extraordinary care. I have literally put my life in their hands twice, and I cannot begin to express my level of gratitude."
NASCAR has ruled Vickers eligible to compete in the 2015 Chase for the Sprint Cup despite him missing the season's first two races.
"With the clearance from his physicians, Brian Vickers has satisfied all necessary NASCAR requirements to resume racing on March 5," said Steve O'Donnell, NASCAR's executive vice president & chief racing development officer. "Further, NASCAR has reviewed the circumstances surrounding his situation and has determined that he will maintain Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup eligibility despite neither entering nor attempting to qualify in the first two championship events, provided he meets all other necessary eligibility requirements.”
Vickers, 31, has been sidelined multiple times for health issues since the 2010 season. That year, the Thomasville, N.C., native competed in only 11 Sprint Cup Series races before blood clots were discovered in his legs and lungs. Vickers also had surgery to repair a hole in his heart and was kept out of the Red Bull Racing car for the remainder of the year.
Vickers made a full recovery for the 2011 Sprint Cup Series season, drove a partial schedule in 2012 for MWR, and was sidelined once again in October 2013 for more blood clot issues.
"I was not feeling well in December, so I went to see Dr. William Downey in Charlotte (N.C.)," Vickers said of his latest medical setback. "He discovered my body was rejecting a patch that was surgically placed over a hole in my heart a few years ago. He and Dr. R. Mark Stiegel immediately went to work on correcting the problem. I also want to thank the great counsel along the way by Dr. Jerry Petty, Dr. Robert Heyer and my hematologist Dr. Stephan Moll from the University of North Carolina School of Medicine who is the founder of www.clotconnect.org.
"Now all of my focus is getting ready, so when I return we are prepared to win races and the championship in my Aaron's Dream Machine."
In 58 races as driver of MWR's No. 55 Toyota, Vickers has scored eight top-five and 19 top-10 finishes. He won the July race at New Hampshire in 2013 and captured the pole at Talladega in October 2014. The 2003 Xfinity Series champion owns three victories and 12 poles in 316 Sprint Cup starts.